PDM

This past week COED '13 had yet another training, Project Design and Management. We were asked to bring a member of our communities as a way to promote sustainability. I asked la nina Otinia because she's my good friend and I think she'd like to spend a few nights in a nice hotel with great food. We had fun, even took a few selfies. In hindsight, the training would have benefited a member of the ADESCO that is planning a water project. Good thing I took notes so I can have my own mini-PDM with them!

In the 3-day training we planned a community project from community voting to budgeting to grant writing. It was a LOT of information to take in, but I felt like it was all a review. I'm so ready to start projects, it's crazy. I feel like grad school and the past 6 months have been one ridiculously long training in community development and all I want to do is prove that I get it. I can do this!

I had to remind myself that all of this was new, intimidating, and strange to the salvadorans. My own community has had many PCVs in the past and they're not unfamiliar with the solicitud process. But that doesn't mean they're ready to go like me. They're slow to get started, difficult to stay motivated, and scared to take the first step. They don't teach you that in grad school. They tried to make it clear in PST1&2 that salvadorans have a history of self-doubt and false starts, but you'll never really know the perils of pena and in-fighting until you try to plan a meeting/project yourself.

This training gave us the tools to plan. And so I plan to use big charla poster paper to outline the general process of project planning. I'm an impressionist sort of thinker: I start with the big picture than make hundreds of little lists with every detail possible. (Shout out to grandma and our favorite impressionist painters!)

Starting with the general idea- we want clean water- then breaking it down by concrete steps we need to take is why PCVs exist. It's this kind of planning and thinking that may fall short with salvadorans, and where the PCV can really be a leader in the community.

Post diploma ceremony. Otinia's in the pink!

One part of PDM I absolutely loved was that all the PCVs snuggled slumber party style in one casita to catch up, chambre, vent, and honestly, just speak English. There was a Beyoncé dance party and awkward childhood picture show. Some PC countries have cohorts of 50+ and it's impossible for all PCVs to spend time together as a tight knit group. Just another reason I'm happy to do PC El Salvador!